Awards majority of circles to Ericsson India

Gearing up for the roll out its 3G services soon, Bharti Airtel on Monday said it has chosen Ericsson India, Nokia Siemens Networks and Huawei Technologies as network partners to launch the third generation mobile services. All the three partners will plan, design, deploy and maintain a state-of-the-art 3G HSPA (high speed packet access) network in 13 telecom circles of the total 22 for which Bharti Airtel has bagged the licences for over Rs.12,000 crore.

Further strengthening its relationship with Ericsson, Bharti Airtel has awarded majority of the 3G licence circles to Ericsson India. With this, Ericsson continues to be the Bharti's largest network partner across 2G and 3G circles. On the same lines, Bharti has also expanded its relationship with Nokia Siemens Networks, which would manage Bharti's 3G Network in three circles across India. It has also introduced Huawei Technologies as the third partner for offering 3G services in a few circles.

“The deal is aimed at creating a high-performing, future-proof network to serve its Indian customers. This deployment would enable Bharti Airtel to extend its leadership position in the Indian market and meet the growing demand for high speed surfing and wireless entertainment in the country,'' the company says in a statement.

Airtel's 3G services will usher in a new era of unique lifestyle products. The offerings will be specifically targeted towards mobile broadband, given the enhanced speed and user experience which the 3G technology enables,” the statement adds.